Despite New Theories, Uncertainty Remains Regarding Mexico's Missing 43 Patrick Corcoran - InSight Crime
go to original October 28, 2015

Interviews from Mexico: “Watching them Die" - Laura Carlson speaks with two brothers who have made a documentary film on the subject, focusing on the role of the Mexican Army. Freelance journalist Temoris Grecko and documentary filmmaker Coizta point to facts that underscore the Army’s presence in the area, its knowledge that the students were being attacked, and its complicity in covering up what happened. (teleSUR)

A brand new theory offers an answer to the infuriating question of why a criminal group in Mexico murdered dozens of protesting students last year in Guerrero, but the lack of supporting evidence limits the chances that it will offer any closure to this tragic episode.

Last month, the Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts (known as the GIEI, for its initials in Spanish) -- an ad-hoc investigative coalition of investigators convened to conduct an inquiry into the 2014 disappearance of 43 student protesters in Iguala, Mexico - presented their final report.

The 560-page document serves as a comprehensive condemnation of the slipshod government response, replete with overlooked contradictions and unsupported conclusions. The evidence driving the government's conclusion that the students were abducted for interrupting a speech by Iguala first lady Maria de los Angeles Villa Pineda is weak. Weaker still is the government's conclusion that the students were incinerated in a local dump. Shining the spotlight on the government's incompetence is the chief contribution of the GIEI report, which will hopefully serve as both a model for future investigations and a cautionary tale against similar smokescreens in the future.

The report also posits an alternative theory for the motivation behind the attack, a question that has plagued analysts and investigators since the incident. While the report's authors do not make any conclusive finding, they suggest that one of the five busses commandeered by the students prior to their disappearance was loaded with heroin headed for the United States. At that point, the Guerreros Unidos, the local gang allegedly behind the massacre, would have an obvious business motivation for getting involved in what was until then a routine political dispute. Moreover, they weren't certain which of the busses it was, which required them to attack and retake all five of them.

There are a number of elements of the Iguala case that are consistent with this hypothesis. One is the highly coordinated monitoring of the students' activities by representatives from several different federal and municipal agencies. This also appears to be anomalous and could stem from their collusion with the Guerreros Unidos, and their consequent interest in the destiny of a heroin-laden bus.

Read the rest at Insight Crime

Related: Human Rights Experts to Keep Investigating Ayotzinapa Case (teleSUR)

We invite you to add your charity or supporting organizations' news stories and coming events to PVAngels so we can share them with the world. Do it now!